Rockford gave up 28 points to Mr. Basketball winner KJ Torbert but contained the East Lansing guard just enough to pull out a 54-50 win in the Division 1 state final on March 14.
And Brother Rice’s Jacob Lamb may have provided the blueprint that showed the Rams how to slow the Bowling Green signee in the state semifinal one day earlier at the Breslin Center.
The senior guard held Torbert to eight points on the floor during the 55-52 loss that kept the Warriors (22-6) from making their first state title appearance since 1977.
“He’s been our best defender all year,” coach Rick Palmer said. “He guarded KJ today. He guarded (Wayne State commit) Da’ron Mason (in districts). He guarded (Toledo commit) Jaylohn Allen on Tuesday. He’s guarded all of the best players we face, and we have a really tough schedule. That’s nothing new for him.”
The Warriors are loaded with scorers, from Detroit Mercy signee Greg Grays Jr., another Mr. Basketball finalist, to freshman phenom Jordan McDaniel, who scored a game-high 31 points against the Trojans, nearly pulling off the comeback himself with five field goals and 12 points in the fourth quarter.
So Lamb has carved his own path onto the court, finding a role as the team’s top defender.
“I’ve had a chip on my shoulder since I got to Brother Rice,” said Lamb, who scored four points. “I came expecting to be on varsity my freshman year, and I wasn’t able to, so I’ve continued to battle. I even played on the freshman team my first three games my freshman year before making it to the JV. So, I’ve just continued to battle and work hard. I was able to start and play with my guys at the Breslin, and that’s a memory I’ll never forget.”
Unfortunately, he’ll also never forget how the game ended, sitting on the bench after fouling out with 2:45 left.
With Lamb sidelined, Torbert played like you’d expect Mr. Basketball to play in crunch time, even burying the game-winning 3-pointer with two seconds left and finishing with 23 points.
“It’s over, so I can’t go back on it,” Lamb said. “They called those fouls on me, so I didn’t get the chance to do what I’m supposed to do as a guard — and do what I love to do — which is guard the best player. I love those challenges, and I didn’t get that opportunity late. But I trusted my guys to go out there and win it for me, and they came up just short.”
Lamb guarded Torbert for about 75% of the first half, allowing one field goal while he was on the floor. Torbert went to the locker room with five points.
Mr. Basketball finally found his groove in the third quarter, driving to the hoop three times for two field goals and a trip to the foul line. He also buried a jumper and drew three more free throws on a 3-point attempt.
Lamb did his best to keep a hand in Torbert’s face and his feet in front of him.
“The coaches trust me to guard the best player every game, and we knew that he was their key player,” Lamb said. “We knew we had to limit him to have a chance to win the game, and I just tried my best to limit him and to stop him from doing what he usually does. I felt like I tried my hardest, and I left it all out there for my guys.”
Following the postgame press conference with the Trojans, eight reporters scrummed around Torbert for another interview. Even that many people didn’t cover Mr. Basketball as well as Lamb had before fouling out.
It’s what Lamb did all season for Rice. In fact, it’s what he’s done since earning varsity minutes as an underclassman.
“When you start out as a role player, the only way to earn your way onto the court is to guard,” Palmer said. “He’s bought into that, and he knows that because he’s been around the game a long time. When you do 200 practices of the defensive drills we do, you just become a better and better defender, and as you get bigger, stronger and faster as you grow, he’s become the type of guy that we want here.”
Brandon Folsom covers high school sports in metro Detroit for Hometown Life. Follow him on his new X.com account at @folsomwrites.
This article originally appeared on Hometownlife.com: Brother Rice’s Jacob Lamb doesn’t back down from Mr. Basketball
Reporting by Brandon Folsom, Hometownlife.com / Hometownlife.com
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
